The Benach Collopy Asylum Summer Fellowship 2017I have been so lucky to get to know so many brave, hard-working, family-oriented, and generous people from all over the globe. They all shared one thing in common: a willingness to take a chance to come to the U.S. to be the person they knew they were meant to be.-Ava BenachDescription of Fellowship
Surging violence against transgender and gender nonconforming communities worldwide continue to force a record number of individuals to seek protection at U.S.
Today, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, I am thinking about the M.S. St. Louis. In 1939, while war waged in Europe, the M.S. St. Louis, a transatlantic ship carrying Jewish refugees fleeing the Third Reich, reached U.S. waters by way of Hamburg and Havana. Seeking protection from persecution and a safe place to start over with their families, these refugees hoped to be admitted to the United States of America.
Liana Montecinos
This post was written by Liana Montecinos.
Thirsty, hungry, at the brink of exhaustion, and with fear of violent deaths looming large back home is how many Central American children cross into the U.S. I know this because I have the privilege to work with child refugees in my capacity as paralegal at Benach Collopy and previously as a legal assistant at CAIR Coalition.
Faces of the Refugee Olympic Team
On August 5, the 2016 Olympic Games will open in Rio de Janeiro. I love the Olympics because it is a time when we all set aside our day-to-day worries and differences to come together to cheer on the world’s elite athletes as they represent their home countries. But I am particularly interested in watching this year’s Olympic Games because of one specific “country.” This year, 206 countries will participate.
This post is by Tagreed “Tina” Nafisi and Junou Odige, law students at Catholic University.
In October, when we met Martha* we could not even begin to fathom the endless hurdles we might have to jump. When one door would close, a window would appear. When something seemed like a dead end, it was really a detour. Throughout this journey of preparing for the individual hearing, two things remained constant though: our client’s faith and our diligence.
A Syrian refugee reacts as he waits behind border fences to cross into Turkey at Akcakale border gate in Sanliurfa province, Turkey, June 15, 2015. Photo by Umit Bektas/Reuters
“We live in the age of the refugee, the age of the exile.”Ariel Dorfman (Argentine-Chilean playwright, academic and human rights activist)
By Satsita Muradova
If someone asked me what was the most difficult decision I have made in my lifetime, I would respond – seeking asylum in the United States.
The heartbreak, grief and anger is overwhelming. Fifty people murdered by someone who hated LGBT people more than he loved his own son. On Sunday morning in Orlando, Florida, young people, mostly Latinx (“Latinx” is a term that is meant to include the male, female and gender non-conforming; it is meant to eliminate the default male bias of “Latino,” which, grammatically was meant to serve the same purpose) were celebrating their lives at Pulse Orlando.
Our client of the month for June 2016 is Julia Marquez. Ms. Marquez fled her native Venezuela with her son after suffering systematic and targeted attacks by the Venezuelan government and the government-backed paramilitary groups. Ms. Marquez was targeted in Venezuela because, as a journalist and political activist, she dared to expose the corrupt and discriminatory practices of the Chavez regime and was dedicated to bringing democracy back to Venezuela.
The Benach Collopy Asylum Summer Fellowship 2017
I have been so lucky to get to know so many brave, hard-working, family-oriented, and generous people from all over the globe. They all shared one thing in common: a willingness to take a chance to come to the U.S. to be the person they knew they were meant to be.
-Ava Benach
Description of Fellowship
Surging violence against transgender and gender nonconforming communities worldwide continue to force a record number of individuals to seek protection at U.S. 
